This Week 4 - 10 November

Committee meetings, Brussels

NSA/data protection. The Civil Liberties Committee will hold its eighth hearing on US surveillance in the EU - the first since a delegation of MEPs returned from Washington, where it questioned the US authorities about the impact of surveillance programmes on EU citizens. The cases of the UK and Germany and the involvement of commercial firms in surveillance are also on the agenda. (Thursday)

Troika. The Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee will hold a hearing to review successes and failures in "crisis countries", given that the measures proposed by the Troika are often contested, not least on grounds of democratic legitimacy. MEPs will also discuss the issue with senior representatives of the European Commission and European Central Bank. (Tuesday)

Summit. An EP Conference of Presidents, open to all MEPs, will debate the outcome of last week's EU summit with European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and Inter-Institutional Relations Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič. The summit focused on immigration, data protection, economic coordination and the digital economy. (Tuesday)

Erasmus+. The Culture and Education Committee will vote on an informal deal with Council on Erasmus +, a new multi-annual programme for education, training, youth and sport. It will encompass the Erasmus, Leonardo da Vinci and Youth in Action initiatives and introduce a Student Loan Guarantee facility for Master-level students. (Tuesday)

Entry permit for non-EU researchers and students. The right of non-EU students and researchers to work during their stays in an EU country, and opportunities for them to move to a different one and/or stay on for one extra year to seek a job or set up a firm, are among the issues in a draft law to be voted in the Civil Liberties Committee. (Tuesday)

CO2 emissions for vans. The Environment Committee will vote on a draft law to set CO2 emission limits for new light commercial vehicles. This draft, like that on emission limits for new cars, provides for penalty payments for manufacturers breaching the rules. (Tuesday)

President's agenda. On Monday, President Schulz will be in Athens where he will give a keynote speech at the "South for Growth" conference and meet the Speaker of the Greek Parliament Evangelos Meirmarakis. On Wednesday, he will deliver a keynote speech at the opening of the Agora Conference on Youth Unemployment in the EU (preceded by a press point at 13:45 on the 9th floor of Paul-Henri Spaak Building).